


The Super Mutant Principle

by MeliandreHaberdasher



Category: El Goonish Shive
Genre: A surprising lack of transformation, Bunch of necessary OCs, Car Accident, Child Death, F/F, F/M, Gen, Government Agencies, Magic, Minor Character Focus - Freeform, Mystery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-19
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2020-03-08 03:46:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18886537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MeliandreHaberdasher/pseuds/MeliandreHaberdasher
Summary: When Sensei Greg shut down the Anime-Style Martial Arts dojo, he mentioned having spoken to Nanase's uncle. Edward maintained contact, primarily to know more about Grace's progress but it was not the only reason - He had a plan to mitigate the Super Mutant Principle, and Sensei Greg was at its heart...





	1. Self-defense

A tall man with a tight fitting shirt and slacks walks past another man, blue-haired and mustachioed. As their paths cross on the sidewalk, one whispers to the other: “No soup mix here.” It takes nary a second for the answer to return: “I'll show you a good place.” A quick glance on their surroundings, and they make for the park at a time of darkness, the significance of this meeting being unknown to all.

Any who knew the two men would say they have nothing in common: Sensei Greg, martial arts instructor with a black belt in 3 different disciplines and Edward Verres, the former head of the Paranormal Division and current head of Paranormal Diplomacy. At this hour, barely anyone was in the park, making their encounter much more furtive and suspicious.

“You wanted a meeting?” asked Greg. “I don't know why. It's been at least a year since the last big thing and Grace's doing fine in learning non-lethal techniques. There's just not much to report.”

Edward cleared his throat. The man was all business – Beige overcoat with several pockets, likely filled with magical implements, tie well adjusted over a slightly less-than-pristine shirt. He even wore his holster vest.

“It's precisely why I wanted to take some time to talk to you. You're sure that none of your current students are... gifted?” he asked.

“I did say the code – And not all of the students at the dojo are mine. I've even used my ki techniques-”

“Magic.” interrupted Edward. It was good to set some baseline of communication, especially with someone who was that far removed from paranormal government affairs but was _in the know_ , so to speak.

“-Whatever, to inspect and see if any of them were trying to hide anything. Nothing. That's why I don't understand why we're meeting like this.” stated Greg. All he wanted was to leave and get back to his girlfriend, who he promised a nice dinner and a movie tonight. There wasn't much to see that catered to their anime interests, but they both agreed that a movie marathon of the Evangelion remake movies was a must-see event.

“I wanted to ask follow-up questions. There is a difference between saying 'No worrisome super-mutants' as you call them and saying you did not encounter any dreamers, awakened people or outright wizards. The code is for the former, my question is for the latter.” stated Edward, keeping his composure throughout the statement.

Greg thought about it some more. Were there really students that stood out? Anyone who he should inform the Head of Paranormal Diplomacy? And what did Paranormal Diplomacy even mean? Magical beings? Aliens? Magical Aliens? The only ones he knew were the ones Edward already knew very well. Greg's hesitation drove Edward to clarify his point.

“You remember when I first informed you of what your training could accomplish? You told me afterwards you would shut down your dojo. While there was financial concerns, it wasn't the real reason you shut it down. It was because you realized just how dangerous your training made people. While we were lucky only Elliot and Justin obtained anything paranormal from your training-”

“What about Nanase?” asked Greg. It seemed bizarre for Nanase's uncle to outright forget his niece.

“My niece awakened prior to your training. Regardless of the circumstances, we were lucky in both powers and character of those you trained. What I'm asking you to do isn't too much and I'm also doing it for the sake of these people as well. If I didn't care, I'd just tell you to phone the Paranormal Division and not get involved directly. Even with Arthur having seemingly turned a new leaf, I trust him as far as I can throw him.” exposed the government agent. He could have mentioned more, but a simple truth would suffice for now.

“Well, if you want to learn how to trust him more, I can teach you a judo throw that'll get some serious distance.” Greg sought to add a bit of levity to the speech. Edward's moustache remained of stone.

“Not the point. Moperville is a hotbed of paranormal activity, even with the recent relative peace. I suspect that we have not seen the end of the fallout from last year's events and if anything bad happens, the first line of defense Moperville has is my son, my niece, their girlfriends and their friends. I hope you understand where I'm coming from.” stated Edward. Under his moustache, he flashed a tiny smile while thinking about how Director Liefeld was right, he was too personally connected to the incidents. Yet, it's those personal connections that allow him to go above and beyond. Without those, he would be just as cold and calculating as he knew Arthur to be.

Greg took a glance at Nanase's uncle. He wasn't the head of Paranormal Diplomacy. He wasn't the shrewd cover-up specialist who's successfully suppressed knowledge of aliens and magic throughout the United States using convoluted methods that somehow worked. He was a simple man, pouring his heart out to protect his family.

“I get it. That doesn't change the truth though. I'm able to detect power at quite the distance, and none of the students I teach have any. Maybe some of them may have the possibility to awaken, but unless they've got something, I can't see it. I can't detect potential. I can only tell you what's there.” Edward looked away, taking a deep breath. He knew, deep down, that Greg wasn't lying. “I told you back then that I would tell you if I trained someone who had magic. That hasn't changed.”

Edward remained silent – The cool night air started brushing through his hair and through Greg's hairdo, which could only be qualified as a saiyan afro. Greg scratched the back of his head when he remembered something important.

“Oh, I suppose I should have postponed the code exchange. I remembered just now I'm taking over the self-defense class at the dojo and we're getting new people enrolling for three months. This should attract a different crowd from the usual martial arts teens and it starts in about three days. I'll keep you informed if any of them could be dangerous.”

Edward stood up, having said his piece and obtained the information he wanted.

“Thank you. At the end of the day, that's all I ask. Have a lovely evening.”

Greg wasn't exactly sure if he was just doing pleasantries, or if he knew of the plans he was delaying just for that little chat. That was the problem with government spooks – It was impossible to know.

 

* * *

 

Sensei Greg was at a loss. He hadn't taught self-defense classes before. He knew only of the relaxed atmosphere he kept at the Anime Style Martial Arts Dojo, and the rigid discipline required of this one. Yet, self-defense students didn't attend to learn the discipline necessary to succeed in the world of martial arts. They came because they felt scared, because they felt the need to learn how to defend themselves. Yet if there was one thing running his own dojo taught him, it's that people learned at different rhythms, and not every technique functioned for everyone. Some would learn fast, others would learn slow, and he'd need the ability to read the room and find out where everyone's limits are.

“Hi, I'm Greg, and I'll be your self-defense teacher for this session.”

A cursory look at the class – Practically everyone was dressed accordingly. He could see a few bits of jewelry on some of the students. More specifically, a woman in the 2nd row and a boy in the 3rd, standing diagonally next to the woman in question. Everyone was in sports pants and had a t-shirt on. Just some didn't pay attention to the part where it said “for your own safety, please remove all jewelry.” That was normal – Even he didn't originally read the whole part when he first enrolled into classes, and his senseis were much less gentle about this than he was planning on being.

“All right, before we start, I just want to say that while I'm glad everyone listened and is dressed appropriately, the 'no jewelry' rule isn't a suggestion. Jewelry in danger situations can get stuck on something and rip your ears or nose off, or can allow an attacker to do extreme harm to you with minimal effort. So, for your own safety, if you've got any nose rings, earrings, rings, necklaces, removable piercings of any kind, take five minutes to go to the lockers and remove them.”

A slight whisper saying 'come on now, let's go take care of that and come back' heralded the swift exit of the two offenders so they could take care of that. During this time, Greg continued his introduction speech.

“While we're waiting, I figure we should introduce ourselves. I'll start and we'll go in order. Don't worry if you just joined to see if you like it, there's no bad reason to sign up so long as you're eager to learn. As I said before, my name is Greg and throughout my life, I've learned from several different masters enough to have three black belts. I've also seen my share of street fights so our training will be more on the practical side of things. If the theory behind some of these techniques interests you, I'd suggest signing up for one of our martial arts classes. All right, that's it for me, next?”

The students introduced themselves in short order. One was named Beth, short for Bethany, and she signed up for the class to get some exercise and some self-defense lessons before going abroad for college. Another was named Chadwick, and he simply wanted to see if he liked it well enough to start a full on martial arts course at 50 years old. The trio of Denise, Simone and Jamie, who simply did everything together, were already enrolled in the karate class and just wanted more of Sensei Greg's tutelage. One by one they introduced themselves and stated their reason to join. The two who originally ignored the 'no jewelry' rule returned, without their jewels in tow. Greg explained what they were doing, and the two of them introduced themselves. Rather, the mother of the two introduced themselves. Her name was Jade, and from what she understood, her son wanted to sign up for an actual martial arts class, but he felt too frail and weak for the regular class, and too shy for the self-defense one, so she decided she'd accompany him to get back into shape. Still, the son seemed quite old for someone this socially inept. Greg hoped he would be able to keep up as he did look a bit weak. The self-defense class wasn't exactly the hardest course at the dojo, but it still required being able to perform the movements.

This was shown with a simple jog around the room to get the body's heart rate up. The boy could barely do two laps before having to walk yet it wasn't like he was overweight. In fact, he seemed _underweight_. His running form was terrible as expected from someone who's own mother had essentially described as a shut-in, but that didn't really mean much. After all, Greg was the man who unlocked tremendous potential after watching anime for seven straight days. This was the kind of shut-in He couldn't help but think there was something about this mother and son duo, something he couldn't put his finger on.

The first lesson was a simple fact of self-defense. The best defense is escape. Escaping with your life is the better victory. As such, they concentrated mainly on simple wrist-grab escapes. Mother and son paired together as Greg instructed them in the means to escape a would-be harasser if they attempted to grab their wrist – something as simple as pulling the forearm towards the self and lifting the arm up. The idea was simply to understand the basic principle of body leverage which was at the core of this whole self-defense curriculum.

Time passed, everyone understood the theory but it'd be a long road to feeling comfortable actually doing it under duress. While it was a simple maneuver, few people could claim to be comfortable in a situation where there is risk of severe injury. As the students left the dojo, Greg started to feel out for power... and immediately gasped. The mother and son duo irradiated magical might. He could not tell which of them or if it was a single one that was emanating such strength. Whatever it was, it was raw strength that went even beyond what he felt when Grace went all out.

Frantically running to the teacher lockers, he immediately picked up his cellphone and dialed a number that'd been drilled into his brain cells. The receiver picked up, with no speech. Still, he knew the person was there – this was their tacit agreement after all.

“We've got soup mix. REAL spicy.”

“How spicy?” answered the voice for the first time.

“Ghost pepper.”

Edward Verres banged his fist on his home table so audibly, even his son overheard. He cursed his temptation of Murphy yesterday – He knew better than to tempt fate. Even if fate was merely a fictional construct in a vain attempt to enlarge some heroic feats or predetermine certain events, it was still a risk to tempt it.

“Stand by. You're at the mall dojo? I'll be right there.”


	2. Focus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward Verres realizes that he has to involve Tedd into his machinations, something he is very loathe to do. He also finds out part of the secret involving the mother and son duo with power to rival Grace, yet even as answers are given, more questions arise.

Daylight calmly applies its heat across the entirety of the park while two figures, both recognizable as Sensei Greg and Edward Verres, are sitting on the same park bench. In the back of his mind, Greg wondered just how subtle this set-up truly was. Perhaps going to a bar, or just playing bowling, or literally anything else than an inconspicuous meeting in the open.

“Ghost pepper, really?” asked Edward, looking increasingly worried. Their code was simply based on how spicy a given pepper was. Ghost Pepper essentially meant 'more power than Grace going all out'. He prayed to never utter the words 'California Reaper'. Not that he knew if Nanase's uncle even knew about that one.

“Really. If I was firing a ki blast with that amount of power, I'd level a whole house and you can probably easily verify I've never done that. I'd dare say that whether it was the boy or the mom, their power level... it's over nine thousand!” said Greg, raising his voice at that one, much to the annoyance of the government agent who had no time for memes or levity of any kind.

“It doesn't make sense! A magic user with that amount of power wouldn't have gone unnoticed by the Paranormal Bureau, and for them to suddenly show up in a class you typically don't give, the day after you tell me...”

Then it hit him. He'd taunted Murphy, and the law was striking back as hard as it possibly could with a case where nothing made sense.

“Never mind,” cut out Edward, curtly. “I need more details.”

Greg explained what he knew: She enrolled in the class for the sake of her son, who was too weak for the regular martial arts class as he expressed a desire to learn how to defend himself from bullies. She signed up alongside him because she wanted to get back into shape and thought it would be a nice way to keep an eye on her son. Their names, Jade Evergreen and Michael Evergreen, didn't register anything in Edward's head. Still, he'd investigate. He had to.

“That there's a magic-user walking around with that level of power currently unchecked is worrisome, but that does not mean anything more than what is stated. Can I trust you to monitor the situation in your class?” asked Edward. It was always business with him. Unfortunately, Paranormal Diplomacy rarely requires comedy, except when it did which is usually when he called in Agent Wolf. He was always good for a laugh, even if it was in spite of himself.

“Sure, that's not that much of an issue and I was planning on doing that anyway. Mind if I ask what you'll be doing in the meantime?” Greg wanted to ensure both parties were at least sufficiently involved. He didn't want to be caught holding the petard, so to speak. Especially on something that seemed to be so far off the record that it was no longer within the horizon.

“I'll look into their story and more importantly, I have a favor to ask of my son.”

* * *

“So, how did you like the first class?”

Mother and son were sharing a nice little post-workout treat at the local ice cream store. She felt sore, what with repeating the same movement a lot of times, but it was educational. At least, when a creep would decide to try and grab her wrist to prevent her from running away, she'd know what to do. Her son did not seem all that sore, even after what would be a workout beyond his limits considering how little he spent exercising.

“I liked it. I like that he's not telling us to stand our ground. That we can run away and that it's the best thing to do.” Michael answered his mom. He took a small sip of his milkshake, and smiled. Truly, he thought, I have the best mom ever. Even after she obviously looked hurt, she still continued to try and drill the movement inside her son.

“I'm glad! When I first saw the instructor, I thought we joined the wrong class, but Sensei Greg is as nice as they come, isn't he?” Michael nodded. Jade simply felt her wrist. She didn't expect her son to have that strong a grip. She was able to escape it with no problem, but it still hurt somehow. Michael saw this and immediately turned his head.

“Did... Did I hurt you mom?” he asked, the model young kid, though perhaps a tad less rebellious than what most would imagine a burgeoning teen would be.

“A bit, but I'll be fine. Don't worry about it Michael. I just haven't done so much exercise in a while. I think the last time I did something like this was before you were born!” she laughed, and her son laughed with her.

* * *

The Verres household was often a place of transformation shenanigans and arguably the most competent magic research institute in the state. That is not to disparage the state research institutes, but just a testament how much research Tedd could do in pursuit of his hobbies, much less his goals. Were they known to mages worldwide, the magical advancements developed down in this suburban basement would blow people's minds. Even considering the former magical dam enabling various things that would not be anywhere else.

Edward gave silent thanks that the Moperville library had digitized all of the local papers. It made his search take less time. It did not make the investigation make more sense. The only time Jade Evergreen or anyone close to that name was mentioned was during a car accident that occurred around 12 years ago. He'd used his contacts to get his hands on the police report for the car accident but he wanted to have the view from the local populace before he dove into it.

Even more inconsistencies appeared – The car crash killed either two or three people. News sources were always spotty from time to time so the disparity wasn't too weird. Papers published alongside an online article often stated there were 3 casualties. Papers published later lowered that count to 2, stating the other driver and their passenger were killed on impact due to not wearing a seatbelt.

Opening up the police report, he saw 3 victims. Either the later papers got fed false information or something else was afoot. The names of the victims were Peter Clearwood and Karine Clearwood, two tourists from upper Massachusetts on the other car's side, and on the Evergreen side?

Michael Evergreen.

“Shit.” he cussed under his mouth. Regardless of his wards' current adult state, he still did not want to swear anywhere where there was a slight possibility they could hear him. “I can't think of anything good that can come out of this.” He remembered Grace's upbringing and feared it was a similar scenario. That perhaps Project Lycantrope remnants found their way to Moperville once more.

_Can't verify that, else I'd be getting questioned as to why I'm digging into the Project Lycantrope case files once more._

It's at this point he began to curse he didn't have a vice to throw himself into like his other co-workers. Agent Wolf and Agent Cranium would just angrily flirt with each other until the tension got the better of them. Director Liefeld would simply hit the gym, assuming he wasn't there already.

_In the end, I have to ask Tedd against my wishes._

* * *

If there was one thing that Edward wanted in regards to his son, it was that as much as possible, he wanted to keep him separate from his work. Sure, his son's interests and his government business often ended up overlapping in the end, but he did not want to make him a part of it in any official manner. Granted, he was running this one off the record, so any involvement from Tedd would likely be silenced. It still crossed a line he did not want to cross.

He also knew of his son's knack for understanding what's going on in the realm of magic. Perhaps it was an innate ability he always refused to see because he did not want his son to get involved or perhaps he just was that oblivious.

“Hey dad, pretty rare to see you downstairs.” said Tedd. His father knew very well how wrong this was. He typically avoided the basement, also known as Tedd's lab, for reasons of what often went on, and mostly because he knew there was a good chance Tedd had morphed to a woman, and he just wasn't ready to say daughter. Or change pronouns. He made a compromise to himself.

“Yes, Tedd. I usually want to give you your privacy when you're working on these things, but I really have to ask you something.” he said, with gravitas in his voice. Tedd braced himself for the worse. Was it about his tendency to go female when it suited him? Were they really having this talk now?

“If this is about me being a woman at times...” Tedd started defiantly before being interrupted.

“This has nothing to do with what sex you currently are! I need your help with something. Something... delicate.” Edward's mustache seemed to grow less stiff. Even Tedd had trouble understanding what her dad would want from her.

“Delicate? Uh... you're gonna have to explain, dad. Without being all cagey and mysterious.” Tedd couldn't help but rub it in. It's not often that her dad asked for help in such a tone. When she saw that her dad didn't answer, and had difficulty continuing... she abstained from keeping the ribbing up. This was the most emotional vulnerability she'd seen him have in... well, ever. She did not exactly remember the time where her mother left, after all. She wanted to give him a hug, to touch him, tell him it was all right. Yet an instinct held her back – Maybe if she was male at the time, she would have allowed herself to do so. She knew her dad did not approve. He tolerated, at best, until he understood why – Something he did not have time to actually think about these days.

Edward recomposed himself after seeing Tedd hesitate to give him comfort. For once, he was the one disturbing... her? Let's go with that for now. Instead of... her disturbing him.

“Tedd, what I'm about to ask you is completely off the record. I need you to study someone from afar and tell me if they've casted a spell. If so, I need you to tell me what kind of spell it is and if possible, what kind of magic is powering the spell.” stated Tedd's father, looking a bit more dejected.

“I, uh, what? You want me to spy on someone? Are you sick? Did something happen and I fell into some sort of alternate universe?” Tedd couldn't believe her ears. Typically, it was she who would ask her dad permission to do something questionably legal, not the opposite. What had gotten into her father?

“Yes, no and no. I did tell you that I would not feed you misinformation and I guess it should be doubly so in this case. I've... decided to take some matters in my own hands. Matters which should involve the Paranormal Bureau but won't.” Edward lowered his eyes, leaving Tedd to react to this kind of mind-shattering news. She stood there, mouth agape, but emitted no sound. “In order to keep a better eye on the happenings in Moperville, I asked various people with the ability to sense magic to do so when possible and report to me if someone particularly powerful strolled through. I got a report of someone who has the magical power to take out Grace with might alone but we don't know if she's got the ability or the motive. I could do it if I got closer, but I would be showing my cards if I did that. You have an ability to break down spells and understand them that rivals even some of my best agents.”

Did... did her father praise her? Off a magical ability?

Tedd braced for flying pigs.

“Okay... That's a lot to take in. You're going reneg-”

“I'm not going rogue. I just believe it's time solutions come from the locals, rather than handed from up on high.”

“Whatever. But I'm not one of your agents. I want to know who we're looking at here, and what are you planning to do with the information.” Tedd stated. She had to put down some conditions. It was one thing to help her dad on some magical stuff, but this was magical government stuff. Something she knew her dad didn't want to involve her in.

“Here's the situation: I've remained in contact with Sensei Greg after he shut down his dojo both to monitor Grace and-”

“You were monitoring GRACE!?” she yelled out loud, taking the opportunity that her squirrel lover was working at the Salty Crackers.

“Yes, but that's not important right now.”

“The hell it's not! She's the most important person in the world to me! If you've been monitoring her I at least deserve to know why!” Tedd had gone nuclear, and Edward did not have the strength to fight with his... daughter? Yes, daughter. Her gender is not important right now.

“I felt it necessary at the time. I knew that no matter what would happen, she'd need to fight at one point. Most of you are in too deep to not be targeted by whatever lurks out there, and we both know she only had two modes of dealing with things – fight or flight and that if she fought, whatever was left would end up in a smear on the ground. If she does that to the wrong person, and she'd be taken in as soon as paranormal investigators found out who did it. I don't want to see her dragged away from you, Tedd. You bring her the happiness she deserves, and she brings you the same.”

Tedd was indeed surprised. She did not think her father cared that much about them and their mutual happiness. He felt so distant, so... emotionless sometimes. Especially since the incident which got him to the position of Head of Paranormal Diplomacy – a promotion by any other name, but a demotion in truth. She couldn't hold back, and hugged her father. He carefully attempted to extract himself from the hug, but eventually relented. This calmed Edward down. He didn't alienate his daughter.

“Back to what I... need you to do. The person, or rather, persons I need you to examine are named Jade Evergreen and Michael Evergreen. When Greg examined them, they had magical power even higher than Grace in a legion form. That, in and of itself, is worrisome, but I've investigated a bit and found out that according to the police, Michael Evergreen has been dead for twelve years.”

“Isn't that similar to what happened to Grace?” asked Tedd.

Edward nodded.

“Wow. You think it's those guys again?” she threw back at him.

“At this point, it's a possibility and nothing more. However, if it was anything related to Grace, I assume they'd have been more aggressive in hunting her down. From what I understand, they're simply living a family life as best they can. Greg will keep on monitoring them to see if anything out of the ordinary happens. I just need you to look at them when they get out of the self-defense class at the mall dojo and see if anything magical happens and if so, what is it. I don't want you to do anything else.”

“Wow, dad. I... wow. You're essentially telling me to go to the mall and look at people. That's a lot less bad than what I thought you'd want me to do.” Tedd said. “Mind if I involved Grace and made an official date of it?”

Edward smiled for the first time in this entire conversation.

“You want some extra spending money to shop while you're there, aren't you?”

Tedd flashed a sheepish grin.

“All right, you've got me, daughter. I'll leave out some cash alongside the time you should be near the dojo assuming I'm working when you go.”

Tedd blinked. Did... no way. No way. No frakking way. She didn't believe it. The money was inconsequential to this. Daughter.

It finally happened. Acceptance... somewhat.

She held back some tears while giving her dad the biggest hug she could muster.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyyy people left kudos on the first chapter. Thanks y'all.
> 
> When I originally thought of the outline of this plot, I figured it would need something suitably shocking but at the same time, familiar enough that concentrating on the feelings of the work would be better and I think going this route is the better solution. I've always liked stories that are less about the giant mystery to solve, but rather accompany you while asking questions. In this case, what is currently going on with the mother and son duo? Or should we say the mother, considering what we learn in this chapter.


	3. Discipline

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Both Greg and Tedd are in place to try and find more information about what is happening with the mother and son duo, but are they truly ready for what they will find? And more importantly, what will be done abot the truth they will reveal?

“Is it true you cosplayed as Chun-Li?” asked one of the students of the self-defense class. The atmosphere was quite joyful as Sensei Greg went out of his way to ensure that his class would have some light camaraderie. Besides, someone who's heavy into geek things and had recognized his cosplay? Why not indulge them?

“I sure did! Watch!” stated Greg before moving into a flurry of kicks from a single leg, then the other, ending with a vertical side kick that almost split the air in twain. The student who asked the question was astonished, those in the know emitted a big whoa while those who didn't wondered if they were expected to do the same.

“Now, in an actual fight, the Houyoukou-Sen is not exactly the most practical of things, but it just makes the cosplay that much better in my opinion.” explained Greg, before the few missing students finally came in. It was, of course, the trio of Denise, Simone and Jamie. They were often slightly late for his karate class due to them being from the outskirts of Moperville.

“Now that everyone's here, we'll be able to start the usual exercise but I'll give you a preview of what we'll be doing today. We'll be covering what to do if someone grabs you by the collar. Now, ideally, we'd all have training gis for this, but hopefully you listened to me when I said to bring a shirt you didn't mind tearing too much. Anyway, time for a couple of laps for some cardio, and some stretches to limber up.”

Everyone started running in a circle, following Sensei Greg's rhythm. He intentionally made sure he was in a light jog so he could watch over everyone's rhythm. Those who he didn't see regularly in other classes were doing a bit better than before with the exception of Michael Evergreen. After two laps, he started walking – This wasn't exactly out of the ordinary. People develop running techniques at different rhythms and he's a growing boy, so his energy has to be placed into something else, right? Sensei Greg was still worried. He wanted to help people become stronger, or deal with situations they would not be able to deal with ordinarily.

Keeping a closer eye on him, he noticed something off. Sensei Greg couldn't exactly place it as he was also running at the time, but something felt off about the child's tiredness. From his point of view, it looked unnatural. Not so much because Michael was faking, but as though he was something that did not know what a tired kid looked like. Greg shook these thoughts out of his head. He had a class to teach.

“Chadwick, can you come up front?” he asked the oldest person there. Mostly because he figured the rest of the class would trust him if Chadwick trusted him. Also, because Chadwick was the tallest so the explanation would make a lot more sense than if he called on any of the trio. Or Bethany. Or anyone else, actually. Chadwick complied.

“For the purpose of this exercise, we'll pretend I said something not cool to Chadwick, and he REALLY wants to beat me up. We know it's not true, but that's why we pretend. Chadwick, I'd need you to try and grab me by the collar, please.” asked Greg of his student. Everyone involved in this exercise knew that Greg would never allow anyone to get that close and grab a hold of this, but it was a testament to his mastery that he didn't even flinch when Chadwick finally mustered the courage to do as his master asked.

“Now, this position is usually not the greatest for anyone to be in. Your assaulter has leverage on you and will likely try to push you into a wall. Or try to let go with one hand to punch you. Thing is, in order to continue keeping a hold on you, he has to leave his hands where they are. And that's where you can escape. First, I'll move my foot back as though I wanted to take a stance” he demonstrated, and Chadwick had difficulty just following. He was already at arm's length. “You can already see that if he wants to keep a hold, he has to unbalance himself. Thing is, you don't need much strength to do that – This is all a question of leverage. If he wants to not be in this position, he has to let go” He demonstrated this even further by simply moving his foot back again, which caused his torso to move clockwise as well, taking Chadwick along for the ride. “While he's off balance, you can push his hands away and escape by pulling and pushing on your own shirt like so” he demonstrated, and Chadwick fell to the ground. “Or hit them if you're trained, or all sorts of things. We'll concentrate mostly on keeping the aggressor off balance for this exercise and we'll gradually build into the shirt push and pull. Thank you, Chadwick.” he said, while bowing to his student. Old habits die hard.

He walked among the students as they paired together. It was simple, five times each, then they switch. Greg was more interested in the mother and son pairing that was inevitable. He'd never seen Jade nor Michael partner up with anyone else. At first, everyone had difficulty performing the exercise but they eventually all started to get it. Unfortunately, Jade and Michael had one problem – the 13 year old had difficulty actually getting the pressure onto his mom and vice-versa.

The perfect opportunity to be with them and be close enough to feel what is the source of the power.

Greg approached to offer explanations and his body if they needed some help. He couldn't exactly shrink to Michael's level, but he could be a much better practice for Jade, who got the exercise quickly. Even the part with the shirt pull and push. Jade thanked him, but then what about Michael?

“Well, if I get on my knees, I can be at a reasonable height and I shouldn't get injured even if he successfully escapes, since I know how to break falls.” Greg offered.

“Ah, yeah. That's been worrying me. I don't mind the falling but from being on my knees, I thought maybe I would twist one?” she thought out loud. “Thanks for offering. Be sure to thank the sensei, Michael.”

Michael did as asked. Greg got onto his knees and got his hands on Michael. Michael did it slow, but the movements were similar to his. As he kept his grip, he started to realize something. Michael's body was cold. Even at 13 and not fully developed, after such strenuous exercise, Michael should have been sweaty. His body should have some heat to it. He was the coldest living being Greg had ever touched and while Michael botched the shirt pull and push, Greg was startled to the ground with strength unexpected from the boy.

Strength that came from unnatural means. He found the magic user they were looking for.

* * *

“He called you his daughter!?” Grace was surprised. Not because she didn't think the man who took her in would have even considered not respecting Tedd as such, but rather that he wouldn't accept it this early. “That's awesome Tedd!” she finished.

“It is! But I can't help but worry that he only did so because I'm useful to him right now. Like he thought I would say no if he didn't acknowledge that I'm a man or a woman depending on my mood.” Tedd stated, pointing out his ongoing femininity. For the date, she figured she'd remain female, and then if she felt male after they finished their little spy operation, she'd just morph as they're leaving the mall. Besides, she needed woman clothes for herself. Her buxom form had a full wardrobe, yet it turned out that Tedd's default figure was a lot less voluptuous than she'd imagined.

So, it was time to go bra shopping with the girlfriend. They'd stopped by a coffee stall near the dojo after their purchases to discuss Edward's newfound acceptance, their current mission, and whether or not Grace should morph as her combat form if things go south. The alarm on Tedd's watch rang as students started slowly coming out of the dojo, some faster than others. Tedd scanned all for possible spells cast or active and only saw maybe one spell activated. Still, it was a really useful one – it allowed the caster to find all the exits they can use out of a given area, although Tedd wondered how the hell someone could want to escape so much that they'd get such a spell. When the ones she was told to look out for came out of the dojo, she immediately realized why her father was so worried.

Although her understanding of magic came from her status as a Seer and her studies, she knew she had stumbled onto a spell that simply should not be. The owner of the spell was the mother, Jade Evergreen, though she, herself, did not seem to know it. The effect of the spell was simple, yet its activation required tremendous power – enough power that even a dammed Moperville would not be able to power it. Its effect? Creation of a human being using magic.

“Tedd? Tedd!?” Grace shouted. Her lover hadn't moved nor blinked in seconds. Due to his understanding, Tedd knew exactly what happened thanks to Edward explaining the context. The only thing missing as a piece of the puzzle was the power source but that was merely a footnote in what was essentially a tragic tale.

“Huh!? Grace? What are you yelling my name for?” Grace didn't even hesitate and immediately hugged Tedd. She needed the hug. Grace needed to hug. Tedd leaned into the hug, trying to mouth the words until she abandoned the idea, consoling herself in Grace's warm embrace.

“Hey Grace, what are you doing... I thought you were with Tedd? I hope he's not the jealous type, haha!” Greg stated with a sheepish grin, having locked the dojo for the day. He recognized her and went to talk for a bit.

“I am Tedd”

Greg blinked, remembered who exactly he was talking to, and how he was invited to that gender swap party a while back.

“Oh, yeah. Makes sense. You don't look so good, mind telling me what's wrong?” asked Greg. Maybe he won't be able to help, but he just couldn't leave someone down in the dumps like that.

“I-”

_**YOU WA SHOCK~! Ai de sora go ochite ku-** _

Of all the times to interrupt a tender moment... Sensei Greg saw who it was. Verres household. He had to pick that up.

“Hello? Oh. Yeah, they're here with me actually. What? Uh, why don't you just come to the mall instead? No, we haven't talked about anything yet...?”

Greg hung up and shook his head.

“Who was it?” Tedd asked.

“Your dad. He's on his way here. Mind if I grab a seat after I get some juice?” Greg asked. None really cared, although Tedd became a bit more mindful of the fact that she was extremely close to Grace. Not that she really cared that people knew they were in a relationship, as several people were already aware just by looking at them, but it didn't feel exactly polite to do so in the presence of someone who was pretty much a stranger to her. Less of a stranger to Grace, but still.

Greg returned while Grace still had an arm around Tedd. She wanted to make sure that Tedd was getting some comforting physical contact as apparently full comprehension of the situation led to ultimate sadness. At least, that was her interpretation of events.

“Who knew berries inside a sports drink would work so well? Anyway, your dad told me about what you two were doing here. For what it's worth, I apologize about him disturbing your date? He did that to me last week, so I know the feeling.” Greg stated, to attempt at easing the tension. “So, what did you find?” he asked, curious.

“If you don't mind, I'll explain everything when dad gets here.” Tedd answered.

“It does make a lot more sense to do it this way! How was the class, Greg?” asked Grace, ever so bubbly.

“Went well! They're fairly quick learners, and I think Chadwick's going to end up enrolling in a traditional martial arts class, even at his advanced age. He'll at least talk to his doctor about it, see if it won't put too much a strain on his articulations. Now, honestly, I think it'll just help him overall, but I wouldn't want him to enlist into jiu-jutsu if he's scared about arthritis.” Greg said. Most of these words went over Grace and Tedd's heads, but Grace smiled just hearing that the class went well.

Grace and Greg made small talk, mainly concentrating on their mutual interest of not wanting to kill people, while Tedd was still fretting over the implications of his discovery, something which she knew was better left to her dad. Who, coincidentally, had arrived.

“Apologies for the wait. I can't exactly teleport in.” stated Tedd's father, as matter of factly as possible.

“Sure you c...”

Edward shot his daughter a cold glare.

“Shutting up now.”

“All right, what have we found out?” he asked.

“I'll start” Greg said, mostly because he didn't find out much. “The power level is the same as always, but I got my hands on the son through a training exercise. He's colder to the touch than an actual human being, doesn't seem to sweat under exercise, and accidentally knocked me down using magic instead of the actual technique I taught, so I'm guessing there's a good chance the son's the magic one.” Greg put forth while Edward nodded. Grace was enjoying her herbal tea while Tedd parsed the information with what he learned.

“What about you, Tedd?” Edward asked his daughter. Greg shot him a quick look of surprise, as he was not aware that Edward knew of Tedd's proclivities.

“Dad, I think I've figured out everything about what's happening. Greg's right, in a way. Her son is magic, but he's not a magic user. He didn't cast a spell, he-”

“is a spell. Thanks for corroborating.” interrupted Edward.

“Corroborating!? So you knew all along what I'd find out!? What the hell is wrong with you!? You gave me just enough context so I could realize on my own what was going on and... and...” Tedd had no longer the capacity to voice her displeasure. She wondered why her dad kept this secret. Why he didn't share his theory.

Edward sighed. He wasn't used to working with civilians, much less his child. He reached out to put a hand on Tedd's shoulder, to offer some comforting physical contact, until he saw that Grace had already beat him to the punch by pulling in Tedd closer for another hug. His policy of hiding everything until he can confirm worked well in the office, but with his family, well, it led to hurt feelings. Greg and Grace looked at each other, unsure of the truth behind this little spat.

“Tedd, I had a hunch after reading the file but I absolutely needed you to confirm that it was possible. I didn't want to mislead you, but I didn't want you to unknowingly give me biased intelligence. Anyway, I should explain everything that you two have help me figure out” stated Edward, unsure that full disclosure to all present was the best way to proceed, but it was the fairer way. Seeing as his hunch was correct as far as the case was concerned, he decided to keep trusting it for the disclosure portion of the case.

“This all starts twelve years ago. While this wasn't exactly noted in the file itself, I did some further digging on my end. It seems Michael Evergreen was the result of an abusive relationship Jade had found herself in. Child protection services had been sniffing around the Evergreen home and the police had responded to complaints about a dispute at their place. Michael was around one at the time. His father'd been drinking and he saw another CPS agent ring up the doorbell. He'd had enough of their snooping, and when he was angry at anything he'd take it out on Jade” stated Edward. He'd memorized the history of the case completely, as well as its facts.

“Okay, that's horrible, and I completely understand why she'd sign up to a self-defense class after that experience.” Greg interjected, a bit taken aback to the sordid history of one of his students.

“All we know is that at one point, she had enough and gathered the courage to leave. She grabbed Michael, grabbed the keys to the car, and floored it to a shelter. The problem is she was so scared her abuser would catch up to her, she ran a red light and crashed into a visiting couple from Massachusetts. Killed them from sandwiching them into a tree and her car. Michael, since he wasn't properly tied into a child seat was killed as well. One person in the couple was pronounced dead on arrival, another died of their injuries at the hospital, and Michael was pronounced dead on the spot... for those who saw the corpse at least.” continued Edward.

“Saw the corpse?” asked Tedd. That felt like a weird statement.

“Jade had fainted and regained consciousness at the hospital, and Michael was there. She was never aware he died. We know this because of the disparity between the newspaper reports. Early editions noted three casualties, but editions who got to the hospital after Jade had woken up only said there was two. When the police went to investigate the scene of the accident, Michael's corpse had indeed vanished, though a typo in the police report still mentioned three casualties.” stated Edward once more. Grace did not exactly understand. Not that she wasn't smart, just that she did not make the same link Tedd had made. Greg, however, immediately looked shocked. It explained everything.

“She cast a spell to restore her son.” he said. Tedd shook her head.

“She couldn't. At least, not consciously. The stress from the accident and the abuse probably led her to awaken, and in her unconscious mind, the only thing she truly wanted was for her son to be alive. Her spell isn't to heal impossible injuries or resurrect people like you'd see in video games. It's to create a whole human being. Or at least, a simulacrum of a human being that resembles one well enough that it may as well be one.” clarified Tedd.

“Like when Ellen sprang from the Dewitchery Diamond?” asked Grace, though she knew she was probably wrong. It was the closest person she knew that resembled this situation. Tedd shook her head again.

“No, Ellen is a flesh and blood person. The spell can't actually create flesh and blood. It just creates something that looks like one. It takes a lot of power just to create that, more than a newbie would be able to access, and especially maintaining it for...” Tedd stopped there, she didn't know how long it was maintained. At least, she didn't remember it.

“Twelve years – I have the records to prove it. I didn't bring them with me of course, but Michael Evergreen's been at Moperville Kindergarden and Moperville Elementary before being pulled for home schooling. Interestingly enough, he has no medical records nor anything that would serve to identify that he's not actually a human being. None of these records have been purged either, else I'd have been able to get a copy of them. ”

All four of them slumped down in their seats. Greg took a small sip of his mixture, overwhelmed by just how this situation came about.

“So, what do we do about this?” asked Tedd, to everyone, but especially her dad.

Edward readjusted his glasses to try and stall for an answer. He had none. The woman wasn't dangerous. The fake son wasn't dangerous. Yet that much unchecked power, that kind of spell running around without oversight did not sit well with him. Would he really be willing to sacrifice an abuse victim's only source of happiness for the sake of a hypothetical?

“We talk” decided Edward. “The Paranormal Bureau would simply eliminate the son and likely lock up the mother to gain access to her spell. Naturally, that's not how I intend to do things. My ideal solution would be to have her dismiss the spell of her own volition, and ideally proceed to therapy with a properly magic-vetted psychiatrist. She's a victim in all of this, and while she did kill two people, the state has judged her not criminally responsible. I want her to live a good life, but I don't want her to live a lie” said Edward with conviction while everyone started at him, surprised. “What? Did you seriously think I wouldn't consider her feelings in the matter?” he smiled at his daughter, who laughed nervously.

“Well, dad. With how serious you were getting there, I was kind of worried” nervously stated Tedd. She'd smile and nod weakly, seeing her dad in a brighter light than before. Edward took a good long look at Tedd's face, and couldn't help himself but smile in return. Doing good felt good.

Of course, the good was yet to be done and Greg, finishing his berry juice, brought it up.

“Now, how do we bring it up to her?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wait they were in the mall and they discussed things openly? How does that work?
> 
> Well, I'm sure Edward's figured it out - he's a master at cover-ups after all.
> 
> If you enjoyed, glad you did. If you didn't, sorry about that. I'll try to come up with something better next time.


	4. Leverage

They had a plan. After the self-defense class was over, Sensei Greg and Edward Verres would talk to Jade, and hopefully convince her to dismiss the spell. Of course, what was in front of Edward right now was the first wrench thrown in his plan. Arthur J. Arthur, on a house visit at the Verres household. There was no reason for him to visit other than to try and gain control of Edward's work for the Bureau. Yet, Edward did not even feel any frustration. He'd done this rodeo before. He was ready.

“Arthur.”

“Edward.”

“Why are you here?” asked Edward. A frivolous question.

“I'm here to ask that you relinquish all your materials on the Evergreen case as the Bureau will handle it. It's already bad enough that you undermined my authority on this, don't make it harder on yourself” stated Arthur, confidence incarnate. Yet Arthur only knew that there was a magic user involved, one with an extremely powerful spell. He had not yet met them, therefore he could not anticipate Edward's next move.

“Unfortunately, there's been developments in this case that you might not be aware. It seems that Michael Evergreen, the human being, is dead” started Edward.

“This changes nothing for our goals” retorted Arthur, “nor does it change the nature of my request.”

“That's where you're wrong, Arthur. If the real Michael Evergreen is dead, then who is the current Michael Evergreen? Thanks to my extensive network, we've been able to determine that Michael Evergreen is a magical creature that would be best dealt with diplomatically. Making this case relevant to the head of Paranormal _Diplomacy_ and not the Bureau in general.”

Arthur blinked. He knew he trained Edward and that Edward himself was one of the better field agents prior to his promotion, but to have thought that far ahead? That he did not expect. He couldn't help himself but smile at being outplayed.

“As you yourself have said, I do not waste time. Would you like to come in for tea or leave?” Arthur politely declined, and left.

The evening was otherwise uneventful. Edward, Tedd and Grace discussed how to tactfully bring this kind of situation up to Jade. Edward wanted to bring charts. He was vetoed by both Tedd and Grace. Tedd had morphed back to being male for this discussion and later sleeping, which kind of surprised Edward. He thought he had it right when he said daughter, but then Tedd insisted on son when he was male. This was another thing he'd need to work on, it seems.

Tedd soon vamoosed to the basement alongside Grace, leaving him with attempting to figure out how to explain that it would be healthier to grieve properly after twelve years of denial without using charts. Exposition with charts works well. Intentionally causing a hurricane of emotions and attempting to subsequently calm it? Not so much. Especially since he had no prior rapport with Jade. Only Greg had that, and he had to factor him in.

This was going to be much harder than he anticipated.

* * *

Greg unlocked the dojo, unsure about what he needed to say. He took a few deep breaths, and tried to think about what he would do if this was simply a student who was struggling to keep up. If he disregarded Michael's current state, he still had issues with the exercises. At least he had a reason to bring something up to Jade. Of course, to go from 'Your child is struggling with basic exercise, maybe he needs to do more or needs to see a doctor' to 'Your actual son is dead, and your current son is a facsimile dreamed up by a spell which you have, but may not be aware about, powered by something which we have no idea as normally you shouldn't have that kind of power on hand' is a longer reach than a Hunter x Hunter hiatus.

Still, he knew it had to be done. The students soon arrived, but he made sure to approach Jade when there were less people around.

“Hey Jade, how's it going?” he asked casually.

“Oh, hello Sensei Greg, me and Michael are doing fine” she answered with a warm smile on her face. She had the kind of warmth that often befalls those who've been through a lot, trying to push their problems away.

“That's... actually what I wanted to talk to you about. Michael, that is. He seems to be struggling to even do two laps at the beginning of the session. I'm kind of worried about his health.” said Greg, in an attempt to make her open up to him a little more.

“He's always been a sickly boy, but I see what you mean. I've been worried about him also – It's like he's lacking energy lately and I don't know what to do.”

“Have you been to a doctor?” asked Greg. She scoffed at that.

“Greg, I'm a single mother. That we were even able to sign up for your class is because his grandma did so as a birthday gift, and I took advantage of the family discount.” Greg shut himself up after that one. He knew the struggle if not first hand, but from meeting others who had signed up to different classes and told him about it, as well as close friends from his childhood.

“If you want to talk about this, we can talk after class. I might have some ideas to try and help.” Greg finally invited her. He hoped she would accept. Else their plan would go haywire.

“That sounds great! Oh, I should help him take out his earring before class.” Greg immediately nodded before preparing the props for today's class.

Everyone filed in, as Greg led the run around followed by stretches. Jade was right – Michael barely lasted a lap before having to walk. Of course, Greg knowing that the child was actually a magical construct, he guessed that the amount of magic energy expended by the boy just for simply existing was immense, and physical activity was sapping it faster than before. Perhaps this would be the information they need to try and convince Jade of the need to let go.

Today's class was on self-defense from a stabbing weapon. Unfortunately, aggressors would not shy on using, say, a knife to attack defenseless people, and part of the curriculum was learning how to defend against that. Now, Greg's knowledge required a bit of martial arts knowledge, so he warned the students adequately before calling on Jaime for the demonstration. He produced a bunch of foam knives from his bag, and gave one to Jaime. He explained the most important thing about this lesson – moving out of the way behind the stabber. If he attacked you left-handed, they would need to move to the right. If right-handed, the left. Without that little step, the person being attacked was in an even worse position.

At first, they concentrated on the little step, then Greg called Jaime up again to explain the follow-up. The idea was to push the hand with the knife away with the hand closest to the attacker's body, and then push hard on the hand holding the knife with the other hand. Another use of leverage, as the wrist would bend, it would become extremely difficult to hold on to the knife. After that, well, escape was the best option if you were not trained, or subduing the attacker if you were. This,o f course, assumed the attacker was not exactly good at handling knives, as a proper stabbing attempt would have them have both hands on the implement.

Everyone paired off once more, and class continued as normal. Jade called upon Greg as she did not seem to be able to push the knife out of her son's hand. Greg thought of something and asked to try it.

“Come at me whenever you like, Michael!” Greg smirked. He wanted to motivate the little boy, even if he knew both his status as little and boy were falsehoods. The boy screamed and attempted to stab Greg with the knife. Effortlessly, Greg just stepped to the side, parried the arm and used his other to push hard on the knife, though he believed not hard enough to injure Michael.

The foam knife fell to the ground, as expected. Greg immediately saw what had happened – the boy's hand had disappeared. It was not broken like he feared, but outright gone. Both Jade and Greg looked at each other, wondering what the hell was going on. Hands just do not disappear like that. Yet, even with his hand vanished into the ether, Michael did not seem worse for wear. He felt no pain. It was as though he never had a hand to begin with. Jade looked at her son, and saw an empty hole where you would expect a stump to be. She joined the foam knife, shocked. This was unnatural. She mouthed off a scream, yet no sound was coming out. Michael threw himself on top of her mom, wondering why she was scared. He was fine, right? She pointed out his now disappeared hand, yet he had no reactions. It was as though he had been born without it.

“All right, all right, class is over. I know it's a bit early, but we only had five minutes left anyway. Hope you learned something, but since we had to cut this short, we'll revisit it in another class. Please leave the foam knives on the table. Thank you.” Everyone wondered why Greg had called off the class but they looked at their fellow student on the ground, traumatized and understood. Something happened. A few of them wondered what happened, but others respected Jade's privacy enough to try and not think about it. Once everyone was left but the three of them, Greg finally found the courage to talk. Jade, unfortunately, also found her anger.

“What did you do to my son!?” Jade screamed, trying to assault Greg, while Michael attempted to hold back his mother. He didn't understand the situation.

“I didn't do anything! I did the exact same thing everyone else was doing, the same thing you were doing!” Greg didn't even attempt to defend himself from the blows. He had an idea that her venting like that would likely help, and he knew he could take control of the situation at any time. Fortunately, he wouldn't have to do so as they were interrupted by Greg's partner in this operation - Edward Verres. He opened the door and his presence loomed over the dojo. It helped to know a spell to amplify sounds and touch sensations, even if it was just for entrances like this.

“He's right. He isn't responsible for what happened to your son” clarified Edward. “In fact, we need to have a talk with you, Jade and Michael.”

Jade was confused, Michael looked scared, and Greg looked relieved he wouldn't have to strike a student.

“Edward Verres, head of Paranormal Diplomacy. If I can have a moment, I believe I can explain everything.”

Jade blinked a few times. Paranormal diplomacy? What about that had any relation to her son? Perhaps it was related to her son... Wait, her son? She remembered that fateful night. Striking the other car in its side. The airbags deploying for her, but her son falling through a gap between the airbag and the seat, killed by the impact. Her son was killed? But that couldn't be, he was just... there. As the emotions overwhelmed her, as the memories flooded her brain, she simply shut down. No screams of anguish, no lashing out, just a simple human overwhelmed by too much.

In the locker room, a light glowed, and faded, and Michael simply... disappeared. A shadowy figure walked out of the locker room, dressed inappropriately for such a situation, with a turban, a sash wrapped around the waist with orange pants, and a complete lack of a shirt.

“I am Purusha, and explaining everything is **my** role and my penance.”

Edward took a simple look at the stranger and immediately knew. He was an Immortal. He was the reason why that spell was able to last for so long – all under the guise of empowerment. Greg was shielding Jade from the stranger, even if he did not seem to have any intent to harm her. This was strictly instinctual.

“An Immortal. Figures” mused Edward. “I suppose it was the missing piece of the puzzle – Jade could not have powered that spell, but for you? It would be a trifle. Hopefully, you're one of those nice immortals.”

Purusha bowed, and immediately started explaining. When Immortal law decided that they would simply empower and guide humans, he took it seriously. Yet he always found himself guiding them to further misery, or empowering people he should not have. When he was wandering, he found himself in the house of this couple. He did not know their names, but he saw that the woman was miserable. She knew this abuse she was receiving was wrong, and that it would endanger her child yet she did not risk.

“Hold on, I'm assuming you're talking about Jade here” said Greg, wanting to make sure of the fact. Purusha acknowledged it, and Greg continued. “Then she should be awake for this.” Purusha nodded, and snapped his fingers. Jade gently woke up, a lot calmer than before, though her eyes were watery with tears.

“Are you all right, Jade?” asked Greg, caring more about the safety of the student than the whole there's a floating early Hindu mythological figure in his dojo. Jade withdrew further into herself. _She knows,_ both Edward and Greg thought.

“Seeing the misery she was in, I entered her dreams and convinced her to leave at the first available opportunity. She woke up early to go to the bathroom, and I'd cast a spell to ensure her lover would remain sleeping. However, little Michael accidentally hit something when reaching over his mother's shoulder, which caused something big to fall, and made the man naturally wake up. I thought they had enough time to escape, so I went to them and saw the crash. Three dead humans, just because I decided to give her a push” explained Purusha, looking sullen. “ 'Again?' I thought. Yes, again. I'd guided someone into further misery. When I saw little Michael dead is when I lost it completely. In her confused state, she reached out for a single wish – that her son was alive and well. This allowed me to mark her, and then inhabit the set of earrings they were wearing. I would use my own life force to empower the spell, and give her the son she would have otherwise lost. I vowed I would help Jade however I could.”

Jade listened – This... what magic? Magic didn't exist. Magic was just these sleight-of-hand tricks some street corner magicians did to entertain. Actual magic didn't exist, right? The floating glowing Indian man had to be lying, yet Greg and the other man seemed deadly serious. Did... did she really spend 12 years caring for a son that did not exist?

“I knew that by doing so, I was reducing my own life by a century, but I felt it better to give her what she yearned the most in the world. I can be reborn, after all. Yet, without the earring, I couldn't give little Michael the magical energy he needed. Emulating a human being takes a tremendous amount of energy, especially from someone who isn't used to using magic. Without the earrings, I couldn't adequately transfer energy, which is how we got to here.”

Edward simply took a deep breath and offered Jade a hand to stand up. He figured she and Purusha had things to air out. He had more questions for the Immortal in order to close out this case.

“All this time, you... gave me false hope. I wanted my son away from this man, I wanted my son to live as good a life I could give him. And now... all of that work? It was for someone who's been dead for twelve years?”

Purusha wanted to offer her a hug, she pushed him away. While she herself could never have the strength to push away an Immortal, he felt he owed her the release of successfully doing so.

“Am I correct in assuming you were the one who removed Michael's body from the scene of the accident?” asked Edward. The Immortal confirmed. Jade immediately went to interject.

“Did you at least give him a proper burial?” Jade had to ask. If she could see her son's grave, at least. Even if it was unmarked with his name, she would be... content. That's the most positive she could be in this situation.

“I did. He lies beneath a statue of Archangel Michael near the church. While normally, it would be impossible to bury someone there, I happen to have powers at my disposal that allow me to simply place your son there. I thought it would be appropriate.” Everyone was taken aback by this show of respect. This wasn't just an Immortal messing with someone's life because they felt like it. This was genuinely the work of one who took his duties seriously, yet encountered an unfortunate circumstance.

The glow began to become brighter. Purusha lowered his head, and smiled. He knew this was coming ever since he materialized in the locker room. He was going to be forcefully reset. There was no way he could believe he only acted in Jade's best interest after seeing her like this, after seeing her reaction at the reveal.

“For me, well, this is goodbye. While I vowed to help you however I could, I don't think you'll be needing or wanting my help anymore. In addition, I believe I broke Immortal law, so my reset has already triggered. Edward Verres, I have heard a lot about you, and I know you are the man to ask for this. Please take care of Jade for me. Please allow her to live the life I wanted to guide her towards, but could not.”

He lowered his head, the flash became blinding... and then he was gone. The three of them were alone in the dojo. None of them knew what to make of this. They certainly hadn't expected an Immortal to be powering the spell. They certainly hadn't expected said Immortal to lose control of the spell during the training session and much less to have that Immortal be forcefully reset in front of them. Edward had a lot of ground to cover to get Jade up to speed. At least he had Greg to help him. He already was, in fact, as he was holding Jade close while she cried over losing her son a second time.

* * *

That coffee stand-slash-juice bar was a decently popular hot spot for mall patrons, which allowed Edward to kind of flex his magical might by casting audio protection around the three of them. Curious onlookers would simply overhear three people talking about self-defense. Edward, however, was busy sipping from the blackest of black coffees while exposing about magic in the traditional Edward Verres fashion, answering all of Jade's questions about magic. Greg had his post-workout berry mixture, and Jade had opted for some chamomile. She needed the calming scent and taste of the plant after this event.

“You've done this before, Mr. Verres. I feel like I've known about magic forever now” said Jade, a tiny smile on her lips. She still had a lot of emotions to process, a lot of introspection to do.

“You do not know just how much exposition I do on a daily basis.” Edward smirked, even his moustache got in on the action by lifting itself up enough that both Jade and Greg actually could see his lips. “I just want you to know, Jade. You're not alone in this – There's several resources here in Moperville that will be able to help. If you want to learn how to control your power, keep training with Greg. He's the best possible person to train with when it comes to magic.”

Greg did not expect this kind of praise from Nanase's uncle. Although at this point, he should say his friend. Sure, they did not see eye to eye on many things, but this ordeal had drawn them a bit closer together. He'd at least consider inviting him out to an outing, even though he knew the answer would be a empathetic but understandable 'No.'

“As for me, I have some discretionary spending that I will use to find you a vetted therapist to help you process your feelings. I know you likely don't have insurance, so send your therapy bills to the following address and they will be taken care of, no questions asked. You can also call me if you need anything. I'm kind of a big deal in the paranormal world, apparently.” Edward wanted her to feel absolutely safe. She'd been through a tough ordeal, and would need the help to recover.

Jade, once again, broke down. No one had ever cared for her like these two had. Both patted her on the back, telling her to let it out, that it would be all right. That, ultimately, she would become strong enough to stand on her own, but that for now, she had acquaintances she could rely on, and possibly friends.

She closed her eyes. Perhaps life without Michael could be worth living. All three of them started talking of more mundane subjects, though Edward and Jade mostly talked about parenting, leaving Greg out of the loop as he didn't have much experience in that field. Though, he thought, it wouldn't be so bad, having a tiny Greg with his girlfriend. The time spent together helped Jade open up a bit more, and all three adults felt a closer understanding of each other.

When they left, Jade was truly alone. She had no son. She never had a son since that fateful day. She took a deep breath, looked life right in its eye and walked out of the mall with a forced smile on her face. Yet, even as it was forced, she could feel warmth within herself. This was the first step on her path to recovery.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yeah. I snuck in an Immortal in there. It was the only way I could justify Jade having the power necessary to cast that spell, it fit well with their empower and guide law.
> 
> If I can be honest, it kind of feels rushed. I mean, yeah, I've released one chapter per weekend day for this, but it's one of those things where as I was writing it, I thought it'd be longer but then realized it was careening off a cliff that I forgot to secure. Whoops. Next time, secure your plot points.
> 
> I'm planning an epilogue for this but I reserve myself the right to end it on that note. The epilogue would really just be Jade after therapy being all happy. Who wants to read that, amirite?
> 
> Thanks for reading.


	5. Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The epilogue, delivered under an operation report by Edward Verres and a journal entry by the subject of said operation.

_Diplomatic Operation Report_  
_by Edward Verres  
_ _Head of Paranormal Diplomacy_

 

_Operational Objectives:  
_

  * _Investigate dreamer and magical construct duo_
  * _Determine threat level of dreamer and magical construct duo_
  * _Ensure secrecy of magic remains within acceptable parameters_



 

_Operation Status:  
_ _Completed_

 

_Operation Details:  
_ _I was first made aware of one Jade Evergreen and Michael Evergreen through [ **NAME REDACTED** ]. They had come in contact with the duo through their professional occupation. Their ability to detect power levels led them to contacting me through non-magical, traceable means as per a non-official accord made with this individual in order to assist in both Paranormal Bureau and Paranormal Diplomacy matters._

_I made the call to not pass this information on to the Paranormal Bureau due to lack of investigation and due to few agents being stationed in [ **AREA REDACTED** ] to conduct this operation. Once we received additional information, due to the presence of a magical construct, I deemed this case under the purview of Paranormal Diplomacy as per the department's charter established by Director Liefeld._

_Our investigation showed that the magical construct was actually Michael Evergreen, who had passed twelve years prior, and been reconstructed magically through usage of a spell allowing magic to create a fully formed simulacrum of a human being – The simulacrum does not have any internal organs or what spark causes human life, but is such a convincing facsimile that without magical or medical expertise, it is impossible to authenticate the nature of said construct. This spell, however, requires a lot of magical energy which was provided by an Immortal. Please view the **Immortal** subsection for more details._

_The investigation was carried out by myself and vetted independent contractors who helped determine the nature of this magical construct._

_The magical construct was unknowingly created and dismissed by Jade Evergreen. As she does not possess the power to cast her spell without power provided by additional means, she has been deemed non-threatening. In order to mask her child's death, official records have been doctored showing that Michael Evergreen only died recently. Discretionary funds have been used in order to provide Jade Evergreen with a psychiatrist to help cope with the loss of both child and time. Please view the **Threat Assessment** subsection for more details._

 

_**Immortal** _

_As part of the investigation, I discovered that an Immortal had gotten involved in this case. Rather, the Immortal was involved from the start. It seems that what caused this incident was the death of the real Michael Evergreen, twelve years ago. The Immortal, seeking to guide and empower Jade Evergreen, simply gave her magical empowerment and courage as well as ensuring her abusive lover was left sleeping. Jade Evergreen accidentally woke up her abuser and he wound up chasing her. Panicked and still high off the magical courage, she placed Michael Evergreen in the car but did not ensure he was sat correctly. With only thoughts of escaping, Jade Evergreen ran a red light as another car was crossing, ramming the car and embedding it into a tree. This led to three casualties – Michael Evergreen (pronounced dead on site), Peter Clearwood (pronounced dead on arrival) and Karine Clearwood (pronounced dead on arrival). For more details on the accident, please view Police Report NMG-30424 attached to this report._

_The rest of this information comes from the Immortal themselves. They introduced themselves as Purusha, and explained the whole of this sordid affair. Feeling responsible and also sensing Jade Evergreen's potential as a magician, they simply became a pair of earrings to fuel the spell. Jade herself, wishing for her child to be safe, cast the spell while unconscious. With that, Michael had returned._

_Purusha was forcefully reset after realizing that their actions had violated Immortal Law. The justifications of such do not matter for this report as so much of Immortal Law is dependant on said immortal's beliefs. However, we are to be careful, as Purusha vowed to help Jade however they could, and such Immortal vows are never forgotten, even under resets._

 

_**THREAT ASSESSMENT** _

_Jade Evergreen, though she has an extremely powerful spell at her disposal, is considered to be non-threatening by Paranormal Diplomacy. She has shown that she is not hostile to our nation and the world, that she is willing to keep magic a secret. While she has been under legal scrutiny for the manslaughter of two people and her own child, she was deemed not criminally responsible._

_That, however, goes for what she wants. Jade Evergreen has about twelve years of grief to work through in addition to being dropped into the world of magic rather roughly. I have used discretionary funds in order to ensure she has access to a vetted psychiatrist. This psychiatrist has been pulled from the Paranormal Bureau list of approved medical professionals as protocol demands. If deemed functional without the need of medication, he has access to the list of vetted therapists._

_In order to assess progress, I have also recommended Jade Evergreen meet with an agent who will re-assess the threat she may pose. Said agent will also assess whether she would make a good addition to Paranormal Diplomacy. Due to the sudden formation of this department, we find ourselves short on staff, much less staff that has experience with psychological trauma. This is, of course, conditional on her mental well-being._

_All of the case materials have been provided with the report._

 

_**Conclusion** _

_The operation was both a success for our early warning system and for Paranormal Diplomacy's methods as a whole. Paranormal Diplomacy's goal in these situations is to monitor and only interfere when necessary, which allowed for the best possible resolution – dismissal of the magical construct with no casualties nor aftereffects. Following this operation, I will make the recommendation that Paranormal Diplomacy staff start cultivating civilian networks in order to have an early warning system in case of magical happenings in their areas and possible allies for further operations. I will also recommend that Paranormal Diplomacy operations use de-escalation and problem solving skills in the field. If violence is necessary, backup from Paranormal Bureau agents should be available._

_While all who read this report are aware of how “normal” magic truly is, it remains astounding that such a powerful dreamer was left without monitoring for so long. This case shows that we need to redouble our efforts if we wish to keep the world safe from magical harm._

_* * *_

_I don't know what to write in here._

_My therapist said I should write down my thoughts. It's... hard. It's been a few months since... well, that happened. Even today I still have a hard time writing it down. I've stopped crying. I've stopped wishing all this hadn't happened and Michael was still with me. I feel I failed him. I feel I should have died instead of him. I find myself asking why him instead of me during that car accident. I ask myself why did I delude myself for twelve years._

_I don't have answers. Sometimes, I grow angry and I ask_ ~~_my_ _therapist_ ~~ _her these questions. She just sits there and lets me air these feelings out and then I feel bad for doing that to her. She's there to listen to me, to help me sort myself out, to be less crazy. She'd probably be disappointed that I called myself crazy again. “You're going through a difficult time. There's nothing crazy about your emotions.”_

_It doesn't comfort me all that much to be honest. ~~I want my son back.~~ I want my fake son back._

_I know it's never going to happen. He's dead. The little angel that followed me was never truly real. The more I think about it, the more I can see it now. How he looked pale even with us being outside often. How he was always ready for everything. How he was the ideal son. Even my decisions about him seemed based on how much I wanted to hide him because deep down I knew. I knew he wasn't real._

_Deep breaths Jade._

_I think that, all in all, I don't want to be alone. That doesn't mean it's not going to happen. That's what she says anyway. It's hard, accepting everything that happened. She told me accepting didn't mean just letting it wash over me. Just realizing it happened, and then do something about it._

_I told her I would keep up with the self-defense class. She thinks it's a good idea. Maybe I can make friends, none of them my age, really, but they're all nice people. Besides, anything to get me out of the house._

_Am I happy? I don't think I am. But I'm happier than before. Maybe eventually I'll be happy and that's more than I ever thought possible when it first hit me that my life for the last twelve years was based on a lie. Even on the magic side, I have someone to talk to. Poor agent, having to deal with someone like me. I think he likes it anyway._

_I kind of wish I could speak with Mr. Verres sometimes, but he is busy and other than that one time with Greg, we never really talked. Maybe when I'm feeling better, I'll invite the two of them for a night out, as friends._

_I might no longer have family, I might miss my son very much still... I'll always miss what could have been, but now there's a whole me that could be, and that's important too._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think that's a good place to stop for this little story. Thanks for the kudos and the reads. I'll keep doing this. Just not this fic. It's done. 
> 
> I'm hoping that Jade being a bit more hopeful helped offset the darkness of the reveal.


End file.
